Planet Earth
Explore Planet Earth
Editor's Picks
Latest about Planet Earth
![a tropical rainforest with tall trees and a gap in the canopy where the sun is coming through](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/RkjTYyk9XtNWFkKQXPRpQh-320-80.jpg 320w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/RkjTYyk9XtNWFkKQXPRpQh-450-80.jpg 450w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/RkjTYyk9XtNWFkKQXPRpQh-500-80.jpg 500w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/RkjTYyk9XtNWFkKQXPRpQh-650-80.jpg 650w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/RkjTYyk9XtNWFkKQXPRpQh-840-80.jpg 840w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/RkjTYyk9XtNWFkKQXPRpQh-970-80.jpg 970w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/RkjTYyk9XtNWFkKQXPRpQh-1024-80.jpg 1024w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/RkjTYyk9XtNWFkKQXPRpQh-1200-80.jpg 1200w)
'Once again, innovation and proliferation ended with catastrophe': The environmental disaster of plants taking over the world
By Stephen Porder published
The evolutionary leap that allowed plants to live on land 400 million years ago upended Earth in a way unseen since the Great Oxidation Event over 1.5 billion years earlier.
![a shoot of the enigmatic bamboo species henon bamboo which flowers once every 120 years](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/RxL3UW2KCX2CnVHSJBYGxU-320-80.jpg 320w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/RxL3UW2KCX2CnVHSJBYGxU-450-80.jpg 450w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/RxL3UW2KCX2CnVHSJBYGxU-500-80.jpg 500w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/RxL3UW2KCX2CnVHSJBYGxU-650-80.jpg 650w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/RxL3UW2KCX2CnVHSJBYGxU-840-80.jpg 840w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/RxL3UW2KCX2CnVHSJBYGxU-970-80.jpg 970w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/RxL3UW2KCX2CnVHSJBYGxU-1024-80.jpg 1024w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/RxL3UW2KCX2CnVHSJBYGxU-1200-80.jpg 1200w)
Mysterious bamboo regeneration baffles scientists ahead of once-in-a-century blooming event
By Jacklin Kwan published
Henon bamboo flowers only once every 120 years then vanishes for years, and researchers have no idea how it regenerates.
![A man stands in the middle of collapsed buildings after the earthquake in Moulay Brahim, Morocco.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/PocESv3uQVoCqCxLzh65UM-320-80.jpg 320w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/PocESv3uQVoCqCxLzh65UM-450-80.jpg 450w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/PocESv3uQVoCqCxLzh65UM-500-80.jpg 500w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/PocESv3uQVoCqCxLzh65UM-650-80.jpg 650w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/PocESv3uQVoCqCxLzh65UM-840-80.jpg 840w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/PocESv3uQVoCqCxLzh65UM-970-80.jpg 970w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/PocESv3uQVoCqCxLzh65UM-1024-80.jpg 1024w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/PocESv3uQVoCqCxLzh65UM-1200-80.jpg 1200w)
Here's why Morocco's quake was so deadly — and what we can do for the next one
By José A. Peláez Montilla published
More than 2,500 people died when a powerful magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck Morocco on Sept. 8.
![3D rendering of Planet Earth's magnetic field.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/QUJs2g6VnAxFcskb6oUpT5-320-80.jpg 320w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/QUJs2g6VnAxFcskb6oUpT5-450-80.jpg 450w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/QUJs2g6VnAxFcskb6oUpT5-500-80.jpg 500w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/QUJs2g6VnAxFcskb6oUpT5-650-80.jpg 650w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/QUJs2g6VnAxFcskb6oUpT5-840-80.jpg 840w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/QUJs2g6VnAxFcskb6oUpT5-970-80.jpg 970w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/QUJs2g6VnAxFcskb6oUpT5-1024-80.jpg 1024w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/QUJs2g6VnAxFcskb6oUpT5-1200-80.jpg 1200w)
Why does Earth have magnetic poles?
By Joanna Thompson published
Earth is the only rocky body in the inner solar system with strong magnetic poles. But where do these poles come from, and what do they do?
![A destroyed mosque amid rubble on February 20, 2023 in Hatay, Turkey after a 7.8-magnitude earthquake hit near Gaziantep, by a 7.5-magnitude tremor the same day.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/niHZe6HiaoucurB5a7EEWA-320-80.jpg 320w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/niHZe6HiaoucurB5a7EEWA-450-80.jpg 450w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/niHZe6HiaoucurB5a7EEWA-500-80.jpg 500w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/niHZe6HiaoucurB5a7EEWA-650-80.jpg 650w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/niHZe6HiaoucurB5a7EEWA-840-80.jpg 840w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/niHZe6HiaoucurB5a7EEWA-970-80.jpg 970w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/niHZe6HiaoucurB5a7EEWA-1024-80.jpg 1024w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/niHZe6HiaoucurB5a7EEWA-1200-80.jpg 1200w)
Anatolian fault that gave rise to deadly Turkey and Syria quakes formed 5 million years ago
By Stephanie Pappas published
A new study traces the birth of a tectonic plate.
![The mysterious golden orb discovered at the bottom of the ocean being held by a scientist](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/ZAqDNyH6qY2gSPbtLZt2sU-320-80.jpg 320w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/ZAqDNyH6qY2gSPbtLZt2sU-450-80.jpg 450w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/ZAqDNyH6qY2gSPbtLZt2sU-500-80.jpg 500w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/ZAqDNyH6qY2gSPbtLZt2sU-650-80.jpg 650w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/ZAqDNyH6qY2gSPbtLZt2sU-840-80.jpg 840w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/ZAqDNyH6qY2gSPbtLZt2sU-970-80.jpg 970w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/ZAqDNyH6qY2gSPbtLZt2sU-1024-80.jpg 1024w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/ZAqDNyH6qY2gSPbtLZt2sU-1200-80.jpg 1200w)
'It is biological in origin': 1st analysis of weird golden orb from ocean floor leaves scientists stumped
By Hannah Osborne published
The golden, dome-shaped object was discovered in the Gulf of Alaska during an NOAA expedition and after bringing it to the surface, scientists still have no idea what it is.
![World map of global temperatures in July, 2023.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/bjMLVwDvuZt9i5AUv8Ythc-320-80.jpg 320w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/bjMLVwDvuZt9i5AUv8Ythc-450-80.jpg 450w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/bjMLVwDvuZt9i5AUv8Ythc-500-80.jpg 500w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/bjMLVwDvuZt9i5AUv8Ythc-650-80.jpg 650w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/bjMLVwDvuZt9i5AUv8Ythc-840-80.jpg 840w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/bjMLVwDvuZt9i5AUv8Ythc-970-80.jpg 970w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/bjMLVwDvuZt9i5AUv8Ythc-1024-80.jpg 1024w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/bjMLVwDvuZt9i5AUv8Ythc-1200-80.jpg 1200w)
This was the hottest summer ever recorded on Earth
By Aimee Gabay published
June through August 2023 were the hottest three months ever recorded, according to the World Meteorological Organization.
![A map showing the projected path of Tropical Storm Lee.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/fzemeJyvDzMNXgKJPS8DfW-320-80.jpg 320w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/fzemeJyvDzMNXgKJPS8DfW-450-80.jpg 450w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/fzemeJyvDzMNXgKJPS8DfW-500-80.jpg 500w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/fzemeJyvDzMNXgKJPS8DfW-650-80.jpg 650w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/fzemeJyvDzMNXgKJPS8DfW-840-80.jpg 840w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/fzemeJyvDzMNXgKJPS8DfW-970-80.jpg 970w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/fzemeJyvDzMNXgKJPS8DfW-1024-80.jpg 1024w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/fzemeJyvDzMNXgKJPS8DfW-1200-80.jpg 1200w)
Tropical Storm Lee could become an 'extremely dangerous major hurricane' by this weekend
By Jennifer Nalewicki published
Forecasters are keeping an eye on Tropical Storm Lee, which they predict could soon become a full-blown hurricane in the Atlantic Ocean.
Live Science newsletter
Stay up to date on the latest science news by signing up for our Essentials newsletter.